Country Focus: Italy

While known for its art, food and rich history, Italy also offers businesses well-established infrastructures for R&D, innovation and design and a strong manufacturing base. Italy’s geographic location is significant, making it a strategic logistics hub and a gateway to the European Single Market.

With the new Prime Minister Girogia Meloni at the helm, the question for Italy is obviously will the new government be good for business. The Economist reports that Italy, the third-biggest economy in the Euro area, seems to be doing well despite the continent’s overall gloom. However, long-term performance remains poor, with near-zero growth in GDP per head since 2000, the worst in the OECD club of rich countries. Italy also has a large public-sector debt, making it potentially the most vulnerable member of the Euro. The article suggests that the new right-wing prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, must take radical action to improve the economy by promoting competition and enhancing productivity, liberalizing the rigid labor market, opening protected service providers to competition, and overhauling the public administration, judicial system, and education.

Time for some fun facts:

Economy

The economy of Italy is a highly developed market economy. It is the third-largest national economy in the European Union and the eight-largest exporter in the world.

Of the world’s 500 largest stock-market-listed companies measured by revenue in 2016, the Fortune Global 500, nine are headquartered in Italy:

The consumer electronics market in Italy is a significant one, with a market size of approximately €12 billion in 2020. The market has seen steady growth over the past few years, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 2-3%.
When it comes to the biggest CE retailers in Italy, the top players include:

Online sales in the CE market in Italy have also seen significant growth in recent years. Amazon entered the Italian market in 2010 and has since become one of the top online retailers for CE products in the country. According to recent estimates, Amazon’s market share in Italy’s CE online market is around 25%. However, the online market is highly competitive and other players like E-bay and local players like Monclick and Yeppon also have significant shares.
Chapter 2: Key Opinion Leaders and Influencers
When it comes to social media influencers in the CE market in Italy, some of the top players include:

In addition to these social media influencers, there are also several important media titles in Italy that review CE products. Some of the top ones include:

Sure. In addition to the overall CE market in Italy, it would also be useful to take a closer look at specific product categories. Here is a section that lists the biggest brands in the following categories:

Headphones:

BT Speakers:

Radios:

Smart Beamers:

Small Home Appliances:

Action Cameras:

Health Trackers and Devices:

Walkie Talkies:

Gaming Brands:

It’s worth noting that these are just examples of some of the biggest brands in each category and there may be other brands that are also popular in Italy. In addition, as the consumer electronics market is highly dynamic, some brands may come and go or merge with others.

Aqipa Insights

Aqipa distributes its goods in five major Italian markets, namely Unieuro, Media World, Euronics, Expert and Trony. With more than 150 Unieuro stores, more than 200 Media World stores, more than 100 Euronics stores and many Expert and Trony stores in the country, Aqipa Italy ensures that its products are easily accessible in the Italian market.

Aqipa is part of the B2B and Loyalty Channel, a bonus system in Italy where B2B customers get nice products back when they spend their money there. In the country, Aqipa has a lot of really strong online sellers.

The company distributes most of the brands in the country, and the most popular are GoPro and Marshall, which account for 80 per cent of sales. Other popular brands in Aqipa Italy’s portfolio are Teac, Pure, Vieta Pro and many others.
Adidas has been a good brand for Aqipa Italy, they sold over 4,000 units in a short time and even made a great deal with a local newspaper.

Aqipa Italy is keen to further expand its reach and is currently in talks to enter the baby sector with our Hubble Connected brand in the near future. They are also ensuring that Esoteric brands are well represented in Italy through a sub-dealer.

But what makes Italian retail different from other markets?

In Italy there is a strong fragmentation of the country with the five big companies that work with Aqipa. This means that we can differentiate the products even better than in other countries because there are often fewer companies spread all over the country. We have realised that Italian customers prefer cheaper models, especially in the radio sector.

We asked our Key Account Manager Micael Israelachvili what he would like to see in the Italian retail landscape compared to other markets. His answer was clear: The Italian market should have more courage to show something different. Often they only take the safest route and orient themselves towards the big markets. This means that in the end they all sell the same products.

So if you are in Italy and looking for the best brands in consumer electronics, Aqipa is definitely worth a visit. With their wide range of products and presence in five of the biggest markets in the country, you won’t be disappointed.

If you have any questions regarding our business in Italy, don’t hesitate to reach out to our on-site expert guru Werner Königsrainer!